V. I. Lenin

Meeting of the Soldiers’ Section of the Petrograd Soviet of Workers’ and Soldiers’ Deputies

APRIL 17 (30), 1917{2}

Published:Source:Lenin
	  Collected Works,

      Progress Publishers,1977,

      Moscow,Volume 41,

      pages404.2-406.Translated:Yuri SdobnikovTranscription\Markup:R. CymbalaCopyleft:V. I. Lenin Internet Archive (www.marxists.org)
      © 2004

      Permission is granted to copy and/or distribute this document under the
      terms of theGNU Free Documentation License.

SPEECH ON THE RESOLUTION OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMISSION OF THE SOVIET OF
SOLDIERS’ DEPUTIES

Leninsays that he has read the resolution of the Executive
Commission and the Committee on his activity and has decided to insert his
article on this resolution inPravda; just now he wishes to reply
briefly to the charges being levelled against him. He finds that there are
four questions to which he wants to reply: 1) formal question, 2) question
of land, 3) of the government, 4) of the war.

Onthe first question he welcomes the silence of the resolution on his
trip across Germany, as it shows that the Commission has taken the
standpoint of both sections of the Committee, which say nothing about
it. He reads an extract from the resolution: “... considers the propaganda
of so-called Leninists, etc.” and declares that he assumes full
responsibility for the Leninists’ propaganda. To reply to this charge in
the resolution, the three above-mentioned questions must be examined. He
goes on to explain thesequestions. On the question of land—he favours the transfer of all land to
the use of the working masses without redemption; he speaks about the
transfer by decision of peasant committees, and refers to Shingaryov’s
telegram, which says that the taking away of land is an arbitrary act. That
is wrong because it has been done by decision of the village committees,
which makes the seizure legal. It is naive to think that the peasants can
be influenced by sermons from Petrograd; that is impossible. The question
of land will be decided on the spot. The land should be taken over right
away, in view of the looming famine. Voluntary agreement with the
landowners is an absurdity, you cannot have an agreement between
300 peasant families and one landowner, which is the ratio we now have in
European Russia.

(Aproposal is motioned to limit the speaker’s time. Statements are
made for end against; by a vote the time is limited to 20 minutes.)

Leninsays that if the meeting wishes it, he could alter the time of
the explanations, but could also be through within 20 minutes.

Onthe state structure and administration he says that we need a
people’s republic, and not one with officials, capitalists and
troops. Soviets of Workers’, Peasants’ and Farm Labourers’ Deputies, from
top to bottom, that is the ideal of administration. The people must have
the power. On the question of the War he says that he has never spoken
about the draft reinforcements and knows nothing of the question at
all.{3}That is why lie speaks only about the war. Our government
consists only of capitalists, the war is being waged to benefit the
capitalists, and the war can be ended only through a revolution by the
workers’ masses. The obligations undertaken by our allies are predatory,
they deal only with a sharing of the spoils; annexation is connected with
capital, and cannot be repudiated until capital is taken over. He holds the
capitalists in Germany to be the same as our own capitalists, and says that
Wilhelm is a bloodsucker and, of course, there can be no question of a
separate peace with him—that is absurd. The capitalists started the war
and cannot end it—there is need for a workers’ revolution to end the
war. The Leninists areagainst any separate peace. They said as much back in 1915. They said that
the proletariat, once it takes power, and publishes all the treaties, must
offer peace to the whole
				world.{1}If anyone rejects such peace, the proletariat will start a revolutionary
war. Only a revolution by workers in several countries can put an end to
the war. Universal peace can be achieved only through a workers’
revolution. The practical method of ending the war is fraternisation at the
front, and strengthening the power of the Soviet of Workers’, Peasants’ and
Farm Labourers’ Deputies. That is the only way to bring about the workers’
revolution and universal peace.

REPLIES TO QUESTIONS

1)The reconquest of Kurland is annexation, because in that
case Germany is entitled to reconquer her colonies. The people must be left
to decide for themselves how they want to live. In the capitalist world the
sharing out is according to strength—the stronger get more. It is not
worth while fighting over Kurland, but it is worth while fighting for
Kurland’s freedom to decide whom she wants to join.

2)On the seizure of banks and money. He urges that the seizures should
not be arbitrary but by decision of the majority. (Shouts from the
audience: “Your doctrine leads to a primitive state”.)—No!
(Question: “What is to be done if other countries want
peace?”)—Advance of the workers’ revolution and fraternisation at the
front.

Tactics—wemust see how life goes forward. The experience of life is
the best thing. We must develop the Russian revolution in such a way that
the workers’, peasants’ and farm labourers’ deputies have the
power. (Another question:
“Is that what you preached in Germany?”)—We, that is, Zinoviev and I,
published a
pamphlet{4}abroad, in which we said precisely what we are saying now;
we published it in German and the German socialists circulated it in
Germany.

{1}See present edition, Vol. 21, p. 403.—Ed.

{2}Arriving at a meeting of the soldiers’ section of the Soviet of Workers
and Soldiers’ Deputies on April 17 (30), Lenin requested the floor to make
an urgent statement over the publication in the newspapers on April 16 (29)
of the resolution of the Executive Commission of the soldiers’ section
which condemned the “propaganda of the Leninists” as being just as
harmful as “any other counter-revolutionary propaganda from the right”

(see present edition, Vol. 24, p. 172).

As he was speaking the Menshevik-S.R. majority, against the protests of the
minority, got it dine limited to 30 minutes. When Lenin finished speaking,
he replied to questions from the meeting and then to those of the soldiers
who surrounded him in a room at the exit of the Taurida Palace.

AfterLenin’s speech and objections to it from the Menshevik Lieber,
the soldiers’ section decided to proceed with its business, without making
any statement on the substance of the question.

Lenin’sspeech was published in a distorted version inRechandYedinstvo. It is here published in accordance with the minutes
now at the Central Party Archives of the Institute of Marxism-Leninism of
the C.P.S.U. Central Committee.

p. 404

{3}A reference to the dispatch to the front of units from the Petrograd
garrison, against which workers and soldiers protested, seeing this as the
Provisional Government’s attempt to weaken the revolutionary population of
the capital and violate the condition put forward by the Executive
Committee when the provisional Government was formed on the night of
March 1 (14), that the garrison units which had taken part in overthrowing
the autocracy were not to be withdrawn from Petrograd.

p. 405

{4}A reference to the workSocialism and War(see present edition, Vol. 21, pp. 295–338).

p. 406